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Mega Man is back. In our review we check out the quality of the latest entry in Capcom’s series.
It’s been 8 years since the 10th chapter in the Mega Man series which, like its predecessor, managed to emulate the feeling of the original NES titles. With so many new indie titles and attempts to cash-in on the success of the series, capitalizing on the fact that an official new chapter had yet to come (some more successful, like Azure Striker Gunvolt, and others not, like Mighty No. 9) Capcom realized that not only the series still had appeal, but they needed to do something to renovate the formula: and this is how Mega Man 11 was born.
Let’s face it: Mega Man has always been one of the most challenging series in gaming history. The titles always tested your nerves and required strategy, platforming skills and understanding of how the gameplay works. It is something that needs to be in every title but, at the same time, that doesn’t mean that new players should be left out either. 11 fixes this issue offering not only several difficulty settings, but also a shop that will allow us to buy not only extra lives and useful items, but also parts (upgrades) which will make our life a lot easier. For example, there’s the ability to charge automatically our next shot. Not only all of this is facultative, meaning that if you want a tougher challenge you can simply ignore all of this, but the levels keep being tough, especially when you’ll reach the infamous Wily stages. They just become more accessible for people with less experience and, maybe, it will encourage them to try again without extra help when they’ll feel more confident.
Mega Man 11 also brings a new 2.5D graphic style, with decent voice acting as well. As usual every robot master will bring a new weapon variant that will be super-effective against another one and you’re able to select which one you want to try out first. Of course it’s up to you to find out the best possible stage order. The Double Gear system also manages to be a great help, but not at all mandatory to proceed in the game. You can use it to give yourself more speed – particularly useful if you want to escape death traps – or make your shots more powerful. The Robot Masters will also be able to use this mechanic as well and will become tougher to handle when in this state. Your own double gear can counter these effects but, like we said, it’s not at all mandatory to complete the fights. There isn’t much replayability to be found, so the most fun will be had when you try to bring a more challenging experience to the table.
Conclusion
As a long-time fan of the series – but not a very skillful one, I’ll admit it – and that began to play this with a bit of skepticism, I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by this title. It’s truly the renovation that the series needed and it proves that Mega Man can still make an impact in the current generation of gaming. I definitely recommend this not only to new potential fans of the series – it’s a great entry point thanks to all the new mechanics – but also to the long-time fans. It’s a game that aims to please everybody and it’s definitely worth your time.
This review is based on the PlayStation 4 version of Mega Man 11.